Sachsenspiegel
a book of German common law of the Middle Ages that, since its inception ca. 1221/24, has held great literary and historical significance as an early example of written prose in the German language
sacrilege
an offence against that which is sacred by means of stealing from a temple or through the destruction of holy buildings
sacristy
a room in a church used for storing liturgical vestments such books, objects and robes
saddle stitching
special book-binding technique in which the individual layers are pierced with thread or wire from the inside out
saga
a form of Old Nordic literature that was written down in the 12th and 13th centuries
samizdat
a strand of self-published, dissident Soviet literature that was distributed through unofficial channels
Sanctum Officium
the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith – an institution of the Catholic church responsible for overseeing matters of doctrine
sans-serif
an Antiqua typeface without serifs, featuring consistent stroke width; also known as “Grotesque”
satellite
an artificial object launched into space that orbits the Earth or other bodies used for communication purposes
scaling
in digital image processing and computer graphics, the altering of the size of an image
scanner
device for the optical digitalisation of images
scanography
production of macro shots using a flatbed scanner
schism
a division between members of a religious denomination
scholar
pupil, academic or erudite cleric who does not hold an official office or post
scholar’s library
a library that is dedicated to the research interests of a particular individual, often containing works of unique significance
Scholasticism
dominant method of critical thought and reasoning in the Latin-speaking world of the Middle Ages
Schwabacher
a blackletter typeface from the 15th century
science fiction
a genre in literature, film and visual arts relating to alternate time periods, geographical realms and civilizations
screen printing
printing process also known as silk-screen printing or silk-screening, in which the print image for transfer is laid as a stencil onto a screen mesh
screen reader
a program that identifies content displayed on a screen with the information read back to the user by means of speech synthesis
screen reader
software application that reads out screen content via a synthetic voice
screen ruling
a measure of the fineness of a halftone screen
screenplay
text draft for a film, with different characteristics for various genres such as documentaries or feature films
scribe
a person who transcribed text for a living and enjoyed a level of renown on account of their written and literacy skills as long as those skills were only mastered by a small portion of society
scribe’s workshop
a workshop used for the professional creation of manuscripts, especially before printing was invented
scrinium
a word that has developed, in Modern English, into “shrine”, a scrinium was a round Ancient Roman container used to hold scrolls and papyrus
script
a system of symbols used to record and communicate information in a conventionalized graphical form
scriptorium
a medieval room in which manuscripts were written
scroll
the predominant book form of pre-Christian antiquity, made of materials such as papyrus, leather or parchment
seal impression
a symbol applied to documents or closed receptacles using a sealing stamp; usually made out of sealing wax or clay
seal matrix
device for the application of a seal
sealing wax
resinous mass that softens when heated, composed of shellac, rosin, mineral cinnabar, etc. for the purposes of creating seals on documents and certificates
search engine
software that allows users to search for documents amidst a large mass of data
secondary usage
subsequent usage of a work that has already been used by a media publisher
secretary
an administrative employee with responsibilities relating to communication and correspondence, sometimes in a senior position
Secular Games
Ancient Roman celebrations held between saeculums - periods of time representing the longest possible human lifespan (either 100 or 100 years)
secularisation
in terms of legal policy, the confiscation of ecclesiastical property and land by a secular authority, often the state
self-censorship
restrictions of freedom of speech and print that are imposed, for a variety of possible reasons, in the fields of journalism, the arts and sciences
sententia
brief moral sayings such as adages, maxims and aphorisms
sequestrator
administrator employed by an authority responsible for removing or seizing possession
serial
library-specific term for newspapers, magazines, journals and other regular and repeated publications
serial work
work delivered over a longer period in parts, the sequence of which may not correspond to the later arrangement
series (of books)
series published by a publishing house, mostly with a unified appearance, often also characterised by thematic coherence
serifs
lines that finish off a main stroke at the top or bottom of a letter
sermo (Latin)
a lecture, speech or sermon
sermon
the preaching of God's word, usually in a religious service, but sometimes outside of this
sermon of commitment
a sermon or eulogy issued in printed form, often supplemented by information relating to the person and curriculum vitae
server
in the context of a digital network, a computer that provides data and services for a group of users using server software
Seven Years‘ War
conflict between the great powers of Europe lasting from 1756 until 1763
sewing frame
a device used in a bookbinding workshop for stretching binding wire or string
shares
commercial papers that give the bearer a share in the ownership of a joint stock company, voting right at the annual general meeting and entitlement to dividends
sheet
large unfolded sheet of parchment or paper
sheet-fed printing
paper is printed in sheets rather than in the form of a roll
short grain
when the grain of a sheet of paper lies parallel with its short sides
shorthand
a writing system used predominantly for the purposes of quickly copying dictated language or for recording the content of parliamentary debates
sieve (paper making)
an implement for making sheets at a pulping vat, generally used in conjunction with a rectangular mould
sigillography
the study of seals; an auxiliary historical discipline
signature mark
a small indication placed on the first page of a sheet of the work to which the pages belong
signet
a stamp that is pressed into selling wax in order to seal a document
Silk Road
important trade and cultural transmission routes that connect East Asia with the Mediterranean and which was of great significance in terms of the exchange of scripts, printing technology and paper
sizing
a method of paper production in order to make the product writable and printable
slip proof
proof taken for correction purposes taken from the as yet not finalised type
slipcase
protective casing for books which leave the inscribed spine exposed
slow seller
books that are difficult to sell or even not for sale
small caps
uppercase letters at the same height as lowercase letters primarily used in special display typefaces
SMS (Short Message Service)
a telecommunications service for delivering small amounts of information
social media
digital media and services that allow for interaction and exchanges between individual users
soft cover
a book held in a paperboard cover
software
executable computer program with an associated range of files. e.g. fonts and documentation
source book
a publication (edition) containing historical or literary sources
source citation
reference to the source where information in a printed or digital publication was obtained from
source criticism
the process of evaluating a source concerning its reliability, where it comes from, its genuineness, validity and relevance
source studies
a subarea of the historical sciences that teaches how to deal with sources that provide information about the past
sources
this describes, in the historical sciences, texts, objects or facts from which one can gain knowledge about the past
space
equal distribution of spaces between words to achieve lines of the same length in justified text
spacing (justification)
in typography, the placement of gaps between symbols and blank characters – in hot-metal setting, lead is used, while in digital typesetting software performs the spacing
special character
non-numerical and non-alphabetical symbols required for, among other functions, punctuation
special edition
better appointed in terms of paper, binding, illustration, etc. in comparison with the standard edition
specimen sheet
test sheet from the production print for checking the print quality
speculum literature
a medieval amalgamation of literary texts that shed light on one particular area of life
SPI (samples per inch)
a unit of measurement for the resolution of scanners
spine title
title of a book positioned on the spine of the book cover or dust jacket
stammbuch (family register)
originally a genealogical record in Germany, since the mid-sixteenth century it was used to collect entries from friends and guests as a sign of friendship
stamp
an implement used to place text, seals or symbols on a surface
standard generalized markup language (SGML)
meta language used for defining various generalised markup languages such as HTML or XML
standing type
technical term in the field of book printmaking which involved keeping the lead type of a printed page for a future edition
statutory copy
a copy of a publication that must be delivered to the relevant facilities free of charge as part of a legal deposit
steel engraving
intaglio process that, throughout history, has been used in creating bank notes, stamps and illustrations
stemma
in handwriting science and manuscript study, the genealogy of individual handwriting forms
stencil
a sheet of material with designs, figures or text cut from it, used to form cut-outs of images, decorations or to make inscriptions
Stiftung Buchkunst (Book Art Foundation)
a German foundation that runs the “Most Beautiful German Books” competition
Stiftung Lesen (Reading Foundation)
a German, non-governmental foundation that pursues its goal of promoting the act of reading
stock exchange
an organised market for assets and shares in which the price is set from the interplay of supply and demand
stock-control card
book trade organisational aid from pre-digital times for the monitoring of sales and re-ordering of stock
stone lithography
technique of lithographic printing using the physical properties of a limestone surface treated with grease or water
streamer
a tape drive that reads and writes data on a magnetic tape, primarily used for data storage
study of watermarking
the study of watermarking techniques, historical watermarks and new watermarking technologies
stylus
an ancient pointed writing implement made of a hard material such as bronze, iron, ivory or bone for the purposes of writing on wax tablets
stylus
a writing utensil for making inscriptions on slate or wax tablets
subject catalogue
a library catalogue that systematically organises a given set of collections, for example using key words
subject heading
selected terms in the fields of library indexing and document management for the purposes of classifying media or document content
subject headings authority file (SWD)
a file constructed according to a controlled system of words that reference persons, titles, geographical data and other relevant information
subscriber
a person who, by paying in advance, buys the subscription right to have newspapers, magazines, series or works delivered to his or her address
subscription
pre-paid purchase of newspapers, magazines, serials or other types of work that appear in instalments
subscription
a process that gave consumers access to before it was available to the general public
Subskribent
a form of patron who undertook an advance agreement to purchase a specialist printed work before its publication in German book publishing/music industries as of the 17th century)
Subskribentenliste
a list of individuals who committed to purchasing a specialised printed work before it was published; as financiers their names were often published in the work itself
subtractive colour mixing
mixing technique that uses a range of overlapping colours, facilitating colour printing using the colours cyan, magenta, yellow and black
supplement
an additional publication to a core or already completed work
supralibros
coat of arms or monogram on the front cover of a book indicating ownership
suspension
disciplinary action in the Roman Catholic church that sees a person relieved of their responsibilities
symbol
the identifying marks or semiotic characters suggesting an idea, thought or entity
synagogue
a Jewish place of assembly and worship that can also facilitate the study of scripture and religious instruction
synod
a church council that deals with matters of administration or doctrine
